Raphaella Spence Italië, b. 1978

Raphaella Beatrice Spence was born in London in 1978. At a young age, her family moved to France, where she spent her early childhood. In 1986, Spence returned to London, where her interest in art was sparked by the architectural works of her father and grandfather. Their detailed hand-drawn designs inspired her to see art as a connection between reality, photography, and painting.

At the age of twelve, Spence moved to Todi, Italy, where she learned various painting techniques under the guidance of her father. After studying at St. George’s British International School in Rome, she fully focused on oil paintings, inspired by the landscape of Umbria.

In 1999, Spence held her first solo exhibition in Italy, followed by a successful exhibition in New York in 2003 at the Louis K. Meisel Gallery. She became known in the hyperrealistic art scene, sharing exhibitions with prominent artists such as Richard Estes and Chuck Close.

In 2005, she returned to Italy and created works with social themes such as violence and animal suffering, some of which were exhibited in the Musei Capitolini and auctioned for the benefit of UNHCR. From 2003 to 2008, Spence participated in various projects in cities like Prague, Zurich, Monte Carlo, Las Vegas, and Beijing, capturing urban and aerial photography.

From 2012, Spence embarked on an international museum tour, with her works being exhibited in renowned museums such as the Thyssen-Bornemisza Museum and the New Orleans Museum Of Art. Between 2018 and 2019, she participated in a traveling exhibition on hyperrealism in Brazil, which attracted nearly a million visitors.

In 2022, Spence launched a new series of paintings on sea pollution, presented at the Museo Nacional Thyssen Bornemisza in Madrid. In 2024, these works will be displayed at the Parrish Art Museum in New York and at Gallery SEB in Tilburg.